Practical Tips for Conducting Effective Meetings
Let's face it, meetings are a BIG part of what we do. Why waste valuable time struggling with meetings that are not long enough to get anything accomplished, or the wrong people have been invited?
Here are some practical tips for setting up and running effective meetings:
Set-up
1. Set an agenda and email with the meeting request
2. Request additions/contributions to the agenda
3. Determine the setting based on the type of meeting you are having
a. People will only participate if they are listening
b. People will only listen if they are comfortable
4. Determine if a break will be necessary
a. Meetings over 2 hours
5. Detail they type of participation that you expect
a. Contributions to discussions – Cite topics
b. Prepared topics and discussion leadership
c. Brainstorming
6. Detail the type of preparation expected
a. Send documents that need to be read before the meeting with enough advance notice to read them
b. Samples of documents and artifacts they will contribute
c. Demonstrations and exercises to be done
At the Meeting
1. Review the agenda
2. Thank participants for their time
3. Ask if anyone needs to get a coffee
4. Start main topic first
5. Before each discussion, let people know the level of participation during the talk
a. Questions during the talk
b. Save questions and comments until after
6. Ensure time for discussion between topics
7. Monitor time and arrange for another time if there is more to discuss
8. Manage participants to ensure everyone contributes
a. Directly ask those not speaking if they have anything to add
9. Close each topic before moving into the next
Close the meeting
1. Review any action items identified during the meeting
a. Cite who is to perform the action and by when
2. Set the agenda of missed items for the next meeting
3. Ask for additional items to be added to the next agenda
4. Set a date and time for the next meeting if possible
5. Thank participants
Few points to be kept in mind before sending a 'Meeting Invite'
1.Prepare : Call for a meeting only when you have something important to discuss or share. Focus on one or two key issues, leaving some time for ancillary reports and housekeeping matters. Quite often, we may have reserved our senior members' time by fixing meetings on a certain day, at the same time, every week. If there is nothing important to raise, cancel the meeting. Some decisions can be confirmed via an exchange of emails.
2.Invitation : Invite as few people as possible to the meeting. Managers like to round up every member in the team to hear what they have to discuss. If you have a sales department of say, 50 members, will you want to waste 2 hours of all their time, which works out to 100 man-hours? Will it not be better to meet up with their section heads, or team leaders, and have them disseminate the information after the meeting?
3.Timing : When fixing a time for a meeting, go by a rule of thumb – meetings requiring brainstorming, problem solving, and decision-making on critical issues are to be held in the morning; every other type of meetings may be held in the afternoon. The general belief - our minds are most active in the morning.
4.Be Prepared ;Plan for the meeting, and get all participants thoroughly prepared. This would include stipulating a time duration for the meeting, circulating the agenda (issues to be discussed) in advance, identifying the speakers to address on particular issues, and getting ready the equipment like projector, flipchart, and video player. Ensure that the relevant participants do their homework, research, and can provide the necessary information at the meeting.
5.Reminder : Remind everyone to turn up punctually. Once the meeting commences, dispense with small talk; reserve the chit chat for informal settings. Close the door, switch off all cell-phones, pagers, and if possible, all computer notebooks.
6.Agenda : Start with the most important item on the agenda. Reasons are two-fold. One, people are usually fresh, energetic, and responsive at the start. Two, if there is insufficient time to go through the rest of the agenda, you are assured that the main purpose of your meeting has been covered.
7.Facilitate ; The role of the chairperson of a meeting is that of a facilitator, not a leader. If you are the sort who makes all the decisions, you don't need a meeting to rubberstamp your decisions; all you need to do is to inform the staff through email about the decisions you have unilaterally made. People like to feel empowered and important. They come to a meeting precisely to share their wisdom and experience. Ask them for suggestions, ideas, and proposals. Keep directing and re-directing the questions. A light- hearted mood promotes discussion. Be in control. If someone is sidetracked, steer him back. If someone is not attentive, involve him in the discussion.
8.Action Plans : For a meeting to be successful, it must encompass action plans. If it is a project, carve out the various areas of responsibility, determine who is to take charge of each portfolio, set deadlines for submission of proposals ( After the meeting, be sure to monitor their progress. By doing so, you show your concern and involvement, as well as ensure that they are on target to meet their deadlines.
9.Minutes : It is essential to keep a record of the key points raised at the meeting. These meeting “minutes” should be brief, highlighting the main arguments, the decisions made, and the plans for action. They should be circulated to all the relevant staff, including those who are not invited to the meeting but should be aware of the matters covered.